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Vauxhall Zafira Catches Fire the Exact Day It Was Recalled for... Risk of Fire

Generally speaking, recalls should be treated very seriously by the car owners. If a manufacturer admits to making a mistake and asks its clients to bring their cars in for repairs, it usually means it's something big.
Burnt down Vauxhall Zafira 1 photo
Photo: The Mirror
In the case of a recall for "risk of catching fire," there really is no need to insist on the urgency of visiting the local dealer. Even though most people will think "I've been driving my car for years, and it didn't burst into flames, I can continue to do it for a week or so," maybe this story will change their mind.

43-year-old Damian Fisher was driving his Vauxhall Zafira when he noticed some smoke coming through the air vents. He immediately stopped the car and, five minutes later, the minivan was turned into a burned carcass with anything that wasn't metal completely gone, transformed into a mass of black goo that was spread all over the asphalt near the car.

Fortunately, he was alone in the car so he had time to get out without any problems, and nobody else was hurt either. The firefighters came on the scene and had to give Mr. Fisher an oxygen mask as he was acting hysterical. And he had every reason to be: he told The Mirror that he usually has two large dogs in the back that he wouldn't have had time to get out had they been there that day.

As a cruel joke (but one that might serve him if he decides to ask for his money back), when he got back home later that day, he found a letter waiting for him. It was from Vauxhall, and it was informing him that his car had been recalled on fears it might catch fire. This has got to be the best real-life definition of irony we've ever heard.

But the most worrying thing is the statistics that the London Fire Brigade offered: no less than 120 Vauxhall Zafiras needed its services since 2013, with 14 of the incidents happening this year. Vauxhall is recalling 234,000 Zafira Bs, but it is only scheduled for August. Understandably, Mr. Fisher thinks it should happen "now."
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About the author: Vlad Mitrache
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"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie)
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